January 2014

Marine fuel supplier OW Bunker said Monday it would start operations in Cartagena, Colombia. "The move into the Colombian bunker market builds upon OW Bunker's presence across the region with existing offices in Chile, Uruguay, Panama and Brazil," the company said in a statement.

… Colombia is amazingly beautiful and seems specially created by nature to nurture the dreams of filmmakers in search of the one place capable of providing an entire range of gorgeous scenery perfect for creating a magnificent film.

After a year of efforts from private industry, the Colombian government has decided to include fruit growers in its Program of Productive Transformation (PTP), with the goal of raising seven of the country’s crops to world class export status.

… One such example is seen in Medellín, Colombia, where a unique partnership between public utility company Empresas Publicas de Medellín (EPM) and the city has yielded economic opportunities in marginalized neighborhoods, fostered inclusive communities, and attracted international recognition and investment.

Oleoducto Central SA, owner of Colombia’s largest pipeline, is planning to sell about $400 million in dollar-denominated bonds this year to finance expansion plans, majority stakeholder Ecopetrol SA (ECOPETL) said.

Colombia's ambassador in the United States, Luis Carlos Villegas, met this week with the Editoral Board of the Orlando Sentinel to discuss the economic and social changes that this South American nation has had in the last decade.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Penny Pritzker unveiled a new initiative aimed at increasing business with trade partners in Latin America, only days after the 20th anniversary of the North American Free Trade Agreement's implementation.

Marine fuel supplier OW Bunker said Monday it would start operations in Cartagena, Colombia. "The move into the Colombian bunker market builds upon OW Bunker's presence across the region with existing offices in Chile, Uruguay, Panama and Brazil," the company said in a statement.

Twenty years later and Colombia’s second city is more often associated with prosperous companies and impressive architecture, something exemplified by the headquarters of Bancolombia, the country’s largest commercial bank by assets, which is a gleaming $200m building the size of a cruise liner.

Imagine waking up in a Marriott or a Decameron hotel, opening the curtains to a modern city skyline, stepping outside your door for breakfast at Dunkin' Donuts or Juan Valdez, taking a rapid-transit bus to your meeting, grabbing a burger at Johnny Rockets or El Corral, and picking up a new scarf at Gap or Arturo Calle.

This sounds like a typical day for an American business traveler, but this isn't a story about America. This happens every day in today's Colombia. Just a decade ago, few would have believed that Colombia would become one of the most dynamic economies in the world. But, what seemed improbable then is now a reality.

Colombia is the third-largest economy in the region, home to nearly 50 million consumers and a rising middle class with significant economic mobility. With gross-domestic product growth over the past four years estimated at close to 5 percent and the lowest inflation in decades, Colombia — soon to become a member of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development — has fast become a major regional power.

During the third quarter of 2013, the Colombian economy grew 5.1 percent, fueled by the dynamism of construction and agriculture. The implementation of the largest infrastructure plan in our country's history will increase the potential growth of our economy.

Our economic growth, coupled with a progressive policy agenda, has increased the well-being of our citizens and created a more inclusive society. Health-care coverage is universal, and life expectancy has dramatically moved up. Between 2010 and 2013, Colombia had a significant reduction in poverty rates, lifting around three million citizens to the middle class.

Unemployment has been continuously decreasing during the past 40 months, reaching a record low of 8.5 percent last November. Over the past three years, the Colombian economy has raised the real minimum wage, while creating nearly 2.5 million jobs, expanding a dynamic middle class that offers enormous opportunities for companies around the world.

A simple example illustrates the vibrancy of our market. As a result of rising available income, more than a third of Colombian households own a pet. The pet-care market is estimated to grow at 13 percent per year; according to industry data, the market for pet foods grew from $68 million in 2008 to $400 million in 2013.

Since 2003, foreign direct investment in Colombia has increased sevenfold, and investment responds for about 30 percent of GDP. Our market is increasingly attractive to investors because of our strong adherence to the rule of law and our independent institutions that guarantee a stable macroeconomic environment within a framework of fiscal sustainability.

As a result, leading U.S. companies such as Starbucks, Hyatt Corp., IBM, Google, Facebook, Hewlett-Packard, JW Marriott, Gap and others are investing in our country. Colombian investment abroad is also growing rapidly.

Strengthening international trade has been important for growth. Last year, we signed trade agreements with three new countries and concluded negotiations on a regional pact with Chile, Peru and Mexico — the Pacific Alliance, an integrated market of 210 million consumers and a GDP of nearly $2 trillion.

The Free Trade Agreement with the United States, implemented only one year ago, has already created significant opportunities for U.S. and Colombian businesses to reach both markets. Colombia is Florida's second-largest trade partner globally; last year, exports from Florida to Colombia exceeded $3 billion, a 50 percent increase over the past five years.

Colombia has come a long way. However, significant work remains to be done in order to become a developed country in the next generation. President Juan Manuel Santos is creating a substantial package of reforms in the judicial, political and rural sectors, which will accompany a peace negotiation with illegal groups in order to achieve the long-lasting peace that our country needs to reach its full potential.

Colombia is firmly on the path to sustained progress and prosperity. I invite Florida businesses to seize the new opportunities in Colombia and continue playing a key role in this shared success story.

Luis Carlos Villegas became ambassador of Colombia to the United States on Dec. 3, 2013 having most recently served as president of the National Business Association of Colombia (ANDI), a position he held for more than 17 years. In addition, Ambassador Villegas is a member of the Colombian government's negotiating team in the ongoing peace talks with FARC rebels.

Globalization is no news but the way it works sometimes is. Colombian largest producer of Arabica coffee Juan Valdez has recently opened its first store in Kuwait, one of the countries located in the Arabian Peninsula bordering the Persian Gulf –or as it has also been controversially named by some Arab countries, the Arabian Gulf.

Travel + Leisure's Jane Wooldridge highlighted the "up-and-coming cruise port: Santa Marta, Colombia. She suggests an excursion that involves embracing Colombia's oldest city, where you'll see artifacts of the Kogi and Arhuaco peoples in the Gold Museum-and tour the final home of 19th-century liberator Simón Bolívar."